The remains of a Type Ia supernova – a kind of exploding star used to measure distances in the universe.
NASA / CXC / U.Texas
After a decade studying thousands of supernovae, astronomers are still perplexed by the enigma that led Einstein to his ‘greatest mistake’.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/ESA/Harvard-Smithsonian CfA
The nature of dark energy remains one of the biggest puzzles in cosmology.
Pablo Carlos Budassi/wikipedia
If we lived in a cosmic area with below average density, it would explain recent contradictory measurements of the universe’s expansion.
The James Webb Space Telescope’s deep field image shows a universe full of sparkling galaxies.
NASA/STScI
The universe is expanding faster than physicists would expect. To figure out what processes underlie this fast expansion rate, some researchers are first trying to rule out what processes can’t.
Dr Norbert Lange/Shutterstock
The universe appears to be fine-tuned for life to evolve.
ESO’s Extremely Large Telescope.
ESO/wikipedia
From improving our understanding of dark matter to revealing the location of Earth 2.0, the Extremely Large Telescope promises answers to some of the biggest scientific questions of our time.
NASA
The Euclid mission is preparing to launch on July 1.
Euclid is set to launch this year on a rocket built by SpaceX.
Work performed by ATG under contract for ESA
A spacecraft set to launch this year will throw a spotlight on the mysterious ‘dark side’ of the universe.
black hole.
Astronomers have found that mysterious dark energy may originate in black holes.
CSIRO/John Masterson
Australian astronomers are part of a prize-winning team that was the first to pinpoint the location of a fast radio burst. But there is much we still don’t know about these mysterious bursts.
This image of the NGC 1398 galaxy, which is located in the Fornax cluster, was taken with the Dark Energy Camera.
Dark Energy Survey/Flickr
Dark energy is probably a sea of constant energy in empty space itself, according to new research.
Shutterstock
More than 70% of the Universe is made of ‘dark energy’, the mysterious stuff even stranger than dark matter
The Conversation 17.1 MB (download)
Today on the podcast, we explore what we know about dark energy, believed to be responsible for the acceleration of the expansion of the Universe.
Dark matter and gas in the universe. There may be more dark matter than we think.
Illustris
A study has suggested that the universe is curved like a sphere rather than flat, which may unleash a major crisis in cosmology.
Star trails take shape around the story Mayall Telescop dome in Arizona.
P. Marenfeld and NOAO/AURA/NSF).jpg
Will we have to rewrite Einstein’s theory of gravity? The DESI experiment could find out.
G299 was left over by a Type Ia supernova.
NASA
The rate of the universe’s expansion is in dispute. But a new kind of measurement offers hope.
Bubbles can be modelled as having a negative mass.
Mike Lewinski/Flickr
Forget about dark matter and dark energy, new research suggests that the existence of ‘dark fluid’ may solve some of the biggest mysteries in physics.
HIRAX prototype dishes at Hartebeesthoek Astronomy Observatory near Johannesburg.
Kabelo Kesebonye
By sharing a location with the SKA, HIRAX will be able to conduct science in “radio-clear” skies across its wide frequency range.
Galaxy history revealed by the Hubble Space Telescope.
NASA
From a mysterious energy of empty space to parallel universes, cosmology’s view of ‘nothing’ is anything but boring.
Colorful view of universe as seen by Hubble in 2014.
NASA, ESA, H. Teplitz and M. Rafelski (IPAC/Caltech), A. Koekemoer (STScI), R. Windhorst (Arizona State University), and Z. Levay (STScI)
New observations show we don’t really understand the universe’s expansion.
Nobody knows for sure where black holes lead to.
Shutterstock
The pull created by a black hole is so strong that if you get too close to one – even if you are travelling away from it at the fastest speed it is possible to go – you will never be able escape.